Tongan for Beginners

Tonga is a group of about 170 islands in western Polynesia

in the south Pacific, next to Fiji and Samoa. Archaelogists
and linguistic research have shown that the first settlers
came at around 1000 BC probably from New Guinea,
Indonesia or Philipines. They formed many chiefdoms in the
islands which have been united in 1845 into one Kingdom by
the King Taufa'ahau Siaosi Tupou I. Tonga is the only
country in the region which has never been a colony. Till
nowadays they remain the last polynesian Kingdom, almost
an absolute monarchy. There are about 110.000 Tongans
living in Tonga and about 60.000 or more overseas.
The Tongan language, (a language of the austronesian
group), is one of the oldest polynesian languages and the
most conservative of all (the populations that settled the
rest of Polynesia have begun their journey from Tonga and
Samoa). It maintains more phonemes than any other and
also it uses the consonants more. It is very close to the
languages of Niue and Uvea (Wallis isl.), and similar to
samoan, tuvaluan, tahitian, maori and hawaiian, although
not mutually intelligible. It is today the mother language of
about 120.000 people.
Part one of this course is only intended for absolute
beginners.
Contents
Lesson One
Tongan Alphabet Greetings, Farewells Vocabulary

Lesson Two
Vocabulary Imperative More Greetings

Lesson Three
Vocabulary Present Tense Locational Preposition "ki" Exercises

Lesson Four
Vocabulary More Pronominal Pronouns Asking Exercises

Lesson Five
Vocabulary Verb "To Be" Other Prepositions Numbers How To Use Them Exercises

Lesson Six
Vocabulary Self-defining & Common Nouns Articles Exercises

Lesson Seven
Vocabulary More On Articles Exercises

Part One - The Basics

Lesson One / Lsoni Uluaki
The Tongan Alphabet / Ko e motualea Tong
Letter

Name

Sampa

IPA

Equivalence

Aa

[ A, a ]

[ ,a ]

as a in English "father" or like the Spanish a

Ee

[ e, E ]

[e, ]

as e in English "end" or like the Spanish e

Ff

[f]

[f]

as f in English "fool"

Hh

[ h, x ]

[ h,x ]

Ii

[i]

[i]

as ee in English "beep" or like the Spanish i

Kk

[k]

[k]

as k in English "kill"

Ll

[l]

[l]

as l in English "left" but sometimes like r

Mm

[m]

[m]

as m in English "man"

Nn

[n]

[n]

as n in English "no"

Ng ng

ng

[N]

[]

as ng in English "singer", not like in "finger" (see notes)

Oo

[ Q, o ]

[ , o ]

as o in English "odd" or like the Spanish o

Pp

[p]

[p]

as p in English "pen" or like in French or in Spanish, unaspirated

Ss

[s]

[s]

as s in English "see"

Tt

[t]

[t]

as t in English "too" or like in French or in Spanish, unaspirated

Uu

[u]

[u]

as oo in English "boot", or like the Spanish u

Vv

[v]

[v]

as vin English "van"

fakaua

[-]

[-]

as h in English "horse" but more deep in the throat, something

between and in Arabic

glottal stop (see notes)

So the Tongan alphabet has seventeen letters. It seems

small but it is still the biggest Polynesian alphabet. For
instance the Smoan has fifteen and the Hawaiian only
thirteen letters!

Dont ever forget to count the fakaua as a letter. For

example the word "fakaua" has 7 letters, while when we
say "the first letter of the word "io" we mean the fakaua
and not the "i"
Notes
1. In Tongan there are no consonants clusters. That means
we will never see two clusters together not separated by a
vowel. The letter "ng" is considered one single letter in
Tongan, so it is not an exception. Also, all words end with a
vowel.
2. The vowels clusters: In Tongan there are no diphthongs.
That means that in a vowels cluster each vowel maintains
its original pronunciation. Clusters like "ee" are pronounced
eh-eh, "oo" is pronounced oh-oh etc:tatau (ta-taoo), toutou (to-oo-to-oo), sai (sa-ee), faingofua (fa-ee-ngofoo-a), engeenga (e-nge-e-nga)
3. The vowels can all be lengthened. When they are
lengthened they are written with a macron ("macron" =
"long" in Greek) over them: , , , , . Thus their
duration, the time they are pronounced, is
doubled. Attention: The macron is not a stress. That
means that a vowel with a macron is doubled in duration
but it is not stressed as well.
The macron never exists at the penultimate, unless if there
is a macron on the ultimate too. When there is a word
ending in a vowel with a macron, and it has to take a suffix
which will have as a result having the vowel with the
macron to be the penultimate, it is doubled and the macron
is lifted: fakah + suffix i --> fakahaaiand not fakahi.
4. All Tongan words are stressed on the penultimate. The
only exception is if there is a macron on the ultimate. Then

the stress falls on the ultimate (ex. fenet, muik, peh,

pongat). When the words are preceded by some specific
articles, adjectives and tense signs their intonation changes
and the stress falls on the ultimate. Then this is noted by a
stress: Tong, vak, toh, onong etc. We will mention that
when we will talk about these words. If they precede a
word with a macron on the utimate, the vowel with the
macron is doubled and the stress falls on the second of the
two same vowels: feneta, muiku, pehe, pongato etc.
We will say more about these later also.
5. When we have macrons on both the penultimate and the
ultimate syllables, the stress falls on the ultimate.
Examples ml, mll: the stress falls on the last "".
6. The letter "ng" is pronounced like in "sing", "singer" and
not like in "finger". Thus there is only one single sound
produced, not a compound one (n-g). The sound comes
from deep in the throat. It was written as "G" formerly and
it still is in other Polynesian languages like Smoan,
Tuvaluan, Futunan, and recently in Mori, but it is the same
sound. Its pronunciation can be difficult in some words, but
its all a matter of practice.
7. The glottal stop (fakaua) is a weird sound for the
Hindoeuropeans but it is not so exotic since it exists also in
Arabic, Hebrew and many other languages. Its a stoppage
of the breath by the closure of the glottis, that is to say,
the opening between the vocal hords. It is not a totally new
sound though. We all execute a glottal stop when we
exclaim "Uh uh!". The grunting sensation that comes
between those two words is the glottal stop. Its very
important not to ommit it when talking because the
meaning of the word can change.

Greetings, Farewells

These are some of the most common greeting, goodwill,

farewell etc expressions in Tongan:
Ml e lelei
Ff hake?

hello (lit. congrat. on being well, the being in good health is worthy of gratitude)
how are you? (ff means how, hake is idiomatic with ff)

Sai p

just fine

Sai

to be good, to be alright, to be well

Ml e lava mai

welcome (lit. thanks for coming)

Io, ml e tau mo
eni
Ko hai ho hingo?
Ko _____ au
Ko hoku hingo ko
_____

response to ml e lava mai

Whats your name? (ko is an equivalent of the verb to be, hai means which and ho means you
Well talk about these later)
I am _______
My name is _______

Alu

Goodbye (to the person leaving) (lit. go on)

Nofo

goodbye (to the person staying) (lit. stay there)

Mou

goodbye (to the persons leaving, plural form of alu )

Mou nofo

goodbye (to the persons staying, plural form of nofo )

Fakaau

goodbye (to one person leaving, formal)

Mou fakaau

goodbye (to many persons leaving, formal)

Ktaki

please, excuse me (lit. have patience)

Ml

thank you, congratulations

Ml aupito

thanks a lot

Aupito

a lot, much

Fakamolemole

please, excuse me (lit. to apologize)

Ofa atu

best wishes (lit. love to you. Ofa means love. Its much used at the end of letters)

Note: The expressions ending in are read as one word,

the stress falls on but there is a rising of the voice on .
Its like the rising of the intonation of the word "man" in the
English "Go away man!" The can be ommited.
Those and are just interjections with no specific
meaning.
When one has to say "I am fine, thanks, how are you?", like
saying "what about you" he/she has to say ff hake
koe? Koe is a postponed pron. which means Thou (you
singular) and we will talk about it later.

Dont worry about learning the meaning of each single word

in the above expressions because we shall learn them in the
next lesson.
That is all for the first lesson. It was a bit long because we
had to mention everything about pronunciation. You dont
have to memorize all notes about pronunciation; I just want
them to be here so that you can look after them anytime
you need to in the future.
Ofa atu
Vocabulary

lsoni
uluaki
lea
motualea
io
ikai
hingoa
nofo
alu
mou
hai

Lesson Two / Lsoni Ua

lesson
first
language, speech, to speak, to talk
alphabet
yes, answer to all greetings, compliments
and farewells
no
name
to stay, to remain
to go
you (plural)
who, which

Vocabulary

mahino
alu
ff
lelei
tangi
p
sai
fetaulakianga
ama
kata
hau
mll
fiefia
mou

mai
ui
mohe
pongipongi
p
aho
efiafi
ofa

to understand
to go (singular form)
how
good, well
to cry
just, postposed modifier (see notes)
fine, well, good, nice
meeting place
canoes windward side
to laugh
to come (singular form)
to rest
happy, to be happy
you (plural)
to go (plural form)
to come (plural form)
to call, to call out
to sleep
morning
night
day
afternoon
love, kindness, to love, to be kind to, to b
fond of

Notes
As you have noticed the verbs "to go" and "to come" have
different forms for the singular persons and the plural
persons. This doesnt happen with the rest of the verbs

though, so dont panic! We could call these verbs "irregular"

if this term can apply in Polynesian languages.
P is a very common word in Tongan. It is impossible to find
an exact equivalent in English. Often it is used as "just": sai
p just fine, inu p just drink. Other meanings include
"merely, exactly, however, after all, nevertheless".
Sometimes it is used indiscriminately, usually after the
verb, and it should be untranslatable.

Grammar
The Imperative
Every verb in Tongan is used also as the singular imperative
form without any changes. Thus we have:
Alu!

Go!

Mohe!

Sleep!

Hau!

Come!

The plural is formed by adding the "mou" before the verb:

Mou mohe!

Sleep! (all of you)

Mou ui!

Call out! (all of you)

Mou mll!

Rest! (all of you)

Attention:
Mou !

Go! (all of you)

Mou mai!

Come! (all of you)

In order to say lets we use the pronouns ta and tau before

the verb. We use ta when two persons are included to the
action which will take place and tau when the persons are
three or more:
Ta !

Lets go (us two)

Tau !

Lets go (us three, four)

Ta and tau are preposed pronominal pronouns about which

we will start talking in the next lesson.

More Greetings
Some more greetings, goodwill, apologies etc
Ml e lelei ki he pongipong ni

Good morning (lit. gratitude for being well this morning)

Ml etau lava ki he efiaf ni

Good afternoon (lit. gratitude for we reached this afternoon)

Ml etau lava ki he po ni

Goodnight

Mohe

Sweet dreams

Ml e ofa

Thanks for your kindness

ua!

Sure! Exactly!

Ko au

response when somebodys called your name

Isnt it? Not so?

Hey!

Sorry?

Tulou

excuse me (when you are about to pass in front of)

Mlie

good, splendid, wonderful, well done

And finally a very common interjection which shows

surprise, both of happiness and sadness (depending on the
way you will say it), is oiau! Its like the English wow,
oh! Its the same Mori "au"
You can find all these Tongan greetings, farewells and other
common expressions at the wiki at the
address http://home.unilang.org/main/wiki2/index.php/To
ngan_greetings_and_common_expressions
Ml e lelei Sione

Hi John (Sione = John)

Io, ml e lelei

Hi

Ff hake?

How are you?

Sai p, ml, ff hake koe?

I am fine thanks, how are you?

Sai p, ml aupito

I am fine, thanks a lot

Ta inu?

Shall we drink?

Io, ta inu p

Yes, lets drink

Thats enough for the second lesson. In the next lesson I

will start adding some exercises in the lessons.
Ofa atu

Lesson Three / Lsoni Tolu

Vocabulary

Fale
Api
Fale koloa
Fale ako
Api ako
Fale kai
Kolo
Nukualofa
Eulope
Ou
Ki
Tahi
Mattahi
Vai
Inu
La
Vaka
Vakapuna
Faiako
Taahine
Tamasii
Tamasii ako
univsiti
ilifia
mll
mate

house
house, home
shop, store
school
school
kitchen
town
Tongas capital
Europe
I (for the present tense)
to, towards
sea
beach
water
to drink
sun
boat, ship
airplane
teacher
girl
boy
pupil (male)
university
to be afraid
to rest, (euph.) to die
to die

puaka
mlohi

pig
strong, strongly, hard, powerful, powerfu

Notes
1. Dont forget that there are no diphthongs in Tongan.
Thus, the word "ou" is pronounced oh-oo.
2. We learned in the previous lesson the verb ako to
study, to go to school. Here we see that with the
word fale house in front of it we form the word "school",
that is "house of studying". Thus we have "house of eating"
(kitchen), "house of goods" (shop) (koloa - goods) etc. We
will find more "fales" in the future.

Grammar
The Present Tense
In Tongan there are only four tenses. Now we will learn the
present tense. Its the equivalent of both the Simple
Present and the Present Continuous in English.
In Tongan a verb never changes. There is only one form for
each verb. In English for instance the verb "call" can be
found as "called", "calling" etc., but in Tongan the
equivalent verb, "ui" doesnt have any other types. It is
always ui. So, since verbs are unchangeable, in order to
show their tense we put before them other words, which
are called tense signs. The tense sign of the present is
the oku.
After the tense sign comes the pronominal pronoun, that is
the words for "I, thou, he, she, it, we, you, they". In this
lesson we will learn only the first person singular
pronominal pronoun which is ou. Just keep in mind that the
first singular pronominal pronoun has different forms for

the four tenses; we will see that later. The rest of the
pronominal pronouns are standard for all tenses.
In order to say "I am coming" we have to put first the tense
sign (oku), then the pronominal pronoun (ou) and then the
verb (hau): Oku ou hau
Thus we have:
Oku ou alu

I am going / I go

Oku ou mohe

I am sleeping / I sleep

Oku ou inu

I am drinking / I drink

Oku ou ui

I am calling / I call

Oku ou ako

I am studying / I study etc.

You must confess this was easy Tongan conjugation is very

easy because the verb doesnt change at all and because
there are only 4 tenses. We will learn all of them soon.
You can find a full conjugation of a Tongan verb
here http://home.unilang.org/main/wiki2/index.php/Tong
an_verb_conjugation, but it will be a bit confusing for you
now. It will be useful in next lessons though.

The Locational Preposition "ki"

Ki means to, towards. Thus, oku ou alu ki mattahi,
means "I am going to the beach", oku ou hau ki api, "I am
coming to the house", oku ou alu ki Eulope, "I am going to
Europe" etc. Ki shows the sense of the movement towards
something.
In Tongan when we want to ask someone where he/she is
going we say alu ki f? F means "where". It is a very
common question when we meet a friend, or even a
stranger in the street, and it is an evidence of friendly
interest and not of inquisitiveness. After this specific
question we usually answer starting with 'Alu ki... We don't
use the 'Oku ou here. It's just an idiomatic expression.
Ml e lelei Mele!

Hello Mary (Mele means Mary)

Io, ml e lelei!

Hello

Alu ki f?

Where are you going?

Alu ki kolo

I am going to the town

Sai. Alu

Nice. Goodbye (go there!)

Nofo

Bye bye

In the next lesson we will learn the rest of the pronominal

pronouns and also how to make questions.

Exercises
Exercise A: Translate the following sentences:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)

I am going to the store

I am drinking just water
Let us (many) go to the sea
I am too happy
Good afternoon, come! (pl.)
My name is ______, what is your name?
Stay (sing.), I am going to the town
I am studying hard!

Solutions
Solution of Exercise A:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)

'Oku ou 'alu ki fale koloa

'Oku ou inu vai p
Ta ki tahi
Ml`etau lava ki he efiafi ni, mou ha`u mai!
Ko Tangata`eiki hoku hingoa
Ko hai ho hingo?
`Oku ou ako mlohi!

'Ofa atu

Lesson Four / Lsoni F

Vocabulary

Mei
Lau
Lau tohi
Tohi
Komipiuta
Fono
Fmili
Fefine
Fonua
Puleanga
Tangata
Tui
Puleanga fakatui
Tala
Peh
Talanoa
Hisitlia
Tpile
Sea
Loki
Mohe
Loki mohe
Loki kai
Loki mll
Loki talanoa
Loki kaukau
Tama ako

from
to mention, to think, to consider, to read
to read a letter or a book
book, letter
computer
a town or village meeting
family
woman
land
state, kingdom, government
man
king
kingdom, monarchy
to tell
to say
to chat, to talk (in an informal way)
history
table
chair
room
to sleep
bedroom
dining room
W.C.
lounge
bathroom
pupil, student (more polite than tamasii
ako)

Grammar
More Pronominal Pronouns
We learned in the previous lesson the pronominal pronoun
ou for the first singular in the present tense. The second
singular pronoun is ke and the third is ne.
When oku precedes them, its stress falls on the ultimate
and it becomes ok:
Ok ke alu

you (sing.) are going

Ok ne alu

he/she/it is going

The pronominal pronouns for the plural are:

Tau we, inclusive.

This one is used when both the speaker and the listener are included in its sense. When one
says "we are going" and he means "me and you are going" (he includes the listener to the
action) he must use the tau: oku tau

Mau we, exlusive.

This is used when the listener is NOT included in the "we". When one says "we are going" an
he means "me and the others, not you, are going" he must use the mau: oku mau

Mou you (plural).

Nau

they: oku nau they are going

We already learned that in the imperative: oku mou you are going
The stress of the oku doesnt change here

These are all for the singular and the plural. They are the
same in the rest of the tenses that we will learn later. Only
the first singular (ou) has a different form for the other
tenses. In Tongan there is also the dual number, which has
four more persons that we will learn in another lesson.

Asking
In Tongan in order to ask a question one doesnt have to
make any changes in the sentence. The question is shown
just with the intonation.
Ok ke mohe?

Are you (sing.) sleeping?

Ikai, oku ou mll p

No, I am just resting

Oku mou mai mei kolo?

Are you (pl.) coming from the town ?

Io, oku mau mai mei kolo

Yes, we are coming from the town

Exercises

Exercise A: Translate the following sentences:

1) We (incl.) are going to the house
2) Are they just chatting?
3) No, they are reading a letter
4) Are you (pl.) drinking water?
5) Yes, we are drinking just water
6) Are we (incl.) afraid?
7) Are you (pl.) going to Europe?
8) No, we are just going to the city
9) She is coming from the beach
10) Shall we stay?

Solution of Exercise A:
1) 'Ok ta ki fale
2) 'Ok na talanoa p
3) `Ikai, `oku na lau tohi
4) 'Oku mou inu vai?
5) `Io, `oku mau inu p
6) `Oku tau ilifia?
7) `Oku mou ` atu ki `Eulope?
8) 'Ikai, 'oku mau p ki kolo
9) 'ok ne hau mei matathi
10) `Oku tau nofo?

'Ofa atu

Lesson Five / Lsoni Nima

Vocabulary

Loi
Tala
Tahi
Moana
Vaka
Vakapuna

to lie
to tell
sea
ocean
boat, ship
airplane

Plasi
Fale Alea
Uta
Motu
Mounga
Vai
Loto
Tua
Hala
Toomatau
Toohema
Mua
Mui
Olunga
Lalo
Peito
Fale mahaki
Maama
Langi
Aneafi
Apongipongi
Pusi
Fakaofoofa
Talavou
Pe
Lelei
Sai
Lahi
H mai!

palace
Parliament
bush, mainland, the land in the interior,
away from the coast
island
mountain
water
inside, interior
outside, exterior
road, street
right
left
front
back, behind
above
below
kitchen
hospital
world, earth
sky, heaven
yesterday
tomorrow
cat, pussy
beautiful, handsome
good-looking, healthy, youth, young man
or
good, well
to be well, to be good, to be suitable
very (after the adj. or the adv.)
Come in!

Tau

year
Tongas currency: 1 Paanga (TOP or T$
100 sniti

Paanga

Notes
The prepositions ki and mei become kia and meia before
names of persons:
Kia Mele

to Mary

Meia Sione

from John

Note that in meia the accent falls on ei as if it was a single

sound, and not on i.

Grammar
The Verb "To Be"
In Tongan as well as in the rest of the Polynesian languages
there is no exact equivalent of the verb "to be". When we
want to say that someone is something we dont use any
verb:
Oku ou mlohi

I am strong

Ok ne fakaofoofa

she is pretty

Other Prepositions
We have learned till now the prepositions ki (kia)
and mei (meia). As we said, ki denotes direction and
movement and it is the equivalent of the English "to",
"towards" and mei denotes origin and it is the equivalent of
the English "from".
The preposition i is the equivalent of the English "in" or
"at". It denotes place but not movement. Examples:
Oku ou i api

I am at home

Ok ke i Tonga?

Are you in Tonga?

Just as the
prepositions ki and mei become kia and meia before proper

names, the preposition i becomes ia. We will find some

examples soon.

The Numbers
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
30
40

Noa
Taha
Ua
Tolu
F
Nima
Ono
Fitu
Valu
Hiva
Hongofulu / taha noa
Hongofulu m taha / taha taha
Hongofulu m ua / taha ua
Hongofulu m tolu / taha tolu
Hongofulu m f / taha f
Hongofulu m nima / taha nima
Hongofulu m ono / taha ono
Hongofulu m fitu / taha fitu
Hongofulu m valu / taha valu
Hongofulu m hiva / taha hiva
Uongofulu / ua noa
Uongofulu m taha / ua taha
Uongofulu m ua / uo ua
Uongofulu m tolu / ua tolu
Uongofulu m f / ua f
Tolungofulu / tolu noa
Fngofulu / f noa

90
100
101
102
110
111
120
130
140
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
1001
1002

Hivangofulu / hiva noa

Teau / taha noa noa
Teau m taha / taha noa taha
Teau m ua / taha noa ua
Teau m hongofulu / taha taha
noa
Teau hongofulu m taha /
Taha taha taha
Teau m uangofulu / taha ua
noa
Teau m tolungofulu / taha
tolu noa
Teau m fngofulu / taha f
noa
Uangeau / ua noa noa
Tolungeau / tolu noa noa
Fngeau / f noa noa
Nimangeau / nima noa noa
Onongeau / ono noa noa
Fitungeau / fitu noa noa
Valungeau / valu noa noa
Hivangeau / hiva noa noa
Taha afe
Taha afe m taha / taha noa
noa taha
Taha afe m ua / taha noa noa
ua

50
60
70
80

Nimangofulu / nima noa

Onongofulu / ono noa
Fitungofulu / fitu noa
Valungofulu / valu noa

Taha afe fngeau valungofulu

m tolu / taha f valu tolu
Taha afe hivangeau m
1930
tolungofulu / taha hiva tolu no
Ua afe m nima / ua noa noa
2005
nima
3000
Tolu afe
10.000
Taha mano
100.000 Taha kilu
200.000 Ua kilu
1.000.000 Taha miliona
2.000.000 Ua miliona
1483

As you can see for numbers with more than one digit there
two ways to be expressed. First, by adding the m before
the last part (Attention: Only before the last part), and
second by naming each digit separately:
547.910 can be expressed as:
a. Nima kilu f mano fitu afe hivangeau m hongofulu
b. Nima f fitu hiva taha noa
900.500 as:
a. Hiva kilu m nimangeau
b. Hiva noa noa nima noa noa
3.104. 482 as:
a. Tolu miliona taha kilu f afe fngeau valungofulu m ua
b. Tolu taha noa f f valu ua
Both ways are totally acceptable.
Just pay attention to the twenty which is Uongofulu and
not uangofulu. Also 22 is uo ua and not ua ua, 55 is nime

nima and not nima nima and 99 is hive hiva and not hiva
hiva.

How To Use Them

The question "how many" is "fiha?" in Tongan. Oku
fiha? means "how many are there" but also "how much"
when asking for a price.
The cardinal numbers almost always follow the noun and
there is an e (or e) between them:
Fale e taha

one house

Paanga e hongofulu

ten paanga

Sniti e nima

five cents

The number precedes the noun when the noun denotes a

period of time. Then the e is ommited:
Tolu tau three years
The cardinal numbers are used as ordinal also except for
the "first" which is uluaki:
Taufaahau Tupou f: Taufaahau Tupou IV (Tongas present
King)
Taufaahau Tupou uluaki: Taufaahau Tupou I
As you can see in this case the number is used without
the e.
Exercises
Exercise A: Translate the following sentences:
1) Is Tonga beautiful?
2) Are they at home?
3) No, they are coming from the beach.
4) Tomorrow we (excl) are going to the sea.
5) Tell Mary!.
6) Thou are laughing, thou are happy.
7) I am reading history.
8) We (incl.) are in the dining room.
9) We (incl.) are going to the dining room.
10) They are above.
11) Are you (pl.) in the bush?
12) Get out! (lit. go to the outside)

13)
14)
15)
16)

Twenty islands
Forty four cents
192 houses
14.947 books

Solutions
Solution of Exercise A:
1) `Oku Tonga faka'ofo'ofa?
2) `Oku nau `i `api?
3) `Ikai, oku nau mai mei mattahi.
4) 'Oku mau ki tahi 'apongipongi.
5) Tala kia Mele!
6) Ok ke kata, 'ok ke fiefia.
7) `Oku ou lau hisitlia.
8) `Oku tau 'i fale kai.
9) `Oku tau ki loki kai.
10) `Oku nau `i `olunga.
11) 'Oku mou 'i 'uta?
12) 'Alu ki tu'a!
13) Motu 'e uongofulu
14) Sniti `e f f
15) Fale `e taha hiva ua
16) Tohi 'e taha f hiva f fitu

In the next lesson we will learn how to use the articles.

Ofa atu

Lesson Six / Lsoni Ono

Vocabulary

Malae
Puha
Folau

village green, park, village square

box
to voyage, to travel, to sail

Lsoni ahiahi

exercise, lesson

Try to memorize also the list of the self-defining nouns

given in the rules below

Grammar
The Self-defining & Common Nouns
Till now we have learned the prepositions ki (= to)
and mei (= from). You have noticed that we used them right
before the noun they identify without any article. We said
"ki kolo" and "mei kolo" (to the town, from the town). So we
didnt use any equivalent of the English "the". This doesnt
happen always though. The difference is that in Tongan, all
nouns are classified into two categories: self-defining and
common nouns. Self-defining nouns are used without the
definite article since as their name shows, they are
considered definite by themselves. We could say that "they
dont need the article to be definite". These nouns are
proper names of persons or places or words which are used
as if they were proper names of persons or places. So we
say:
Kia Mele

to Mary (name of a person, self-defining noun)

Ki Tonga

to Tonga (name of a place, self-defining noun)

Meia Siosiua

from Joshua

Mei Amelika

from America

Words which are used as proper names of persons or places:

These words are identified as self-defining and are usually
put without the definite article. At times they can be used
with the article. Then the meaning can remain the same for
some of them but it changes considerably for some others.
These words are:

a) Words about sea, ocean, island, river, landing

places: moana (ocean), vaha (open
sea), vai (pool), tahi (sea), mattahi (beach), motu (island),
mounga (mountain), uta (the interior of the
land), lolofonua (underground),fonualahi (mainland), vaka (
boat) [but not ppao canoe]
b) Words showing
position: loto (inside), tua (outside), mua (front), mui (be
hind,
beyond), olunga (above), lalo (below), toomatau (right),
toohema (left), tokelau (north), tonga (south), hahake (eas
t), hihifo (west)
c) Words denoting buildings, houses, rooms
etc: fale, api, loki, fale ako, api
ako, peito (kitchen), plasi(palace), Fale
Alea (Parliament), fale
mahaki (hospital), hala (road), malae (village green) etc
d) The names of the months
e) The words maama (world, earth), langi (sky,
heaven), aneafi (yesterday), apongipongi (tomorrow), k(
place which is away or the place where someone lives, "my
place", "your place" etc)
All these words are self-defining and usually they are not
preceded by the definite article. The rest of the nouns form
the second category of nouns, the common nouns, which
are preceded by the definite article.

The Articles
Tongan has definite and indefinite articles like English. The
definite articles are e and he and the indefinite article
is ha. First about the two definite articles. The he is used
immediately after the prepositions e, ki, mei, i. In all

other cases e is used. Attention: When a word is preceded

by the definite article, the stress falls on the ultimate.
Examples:
Oku ou lau e toh.

I am reading the book.

Oku ou tala ki he tamasi.

I am telling to the boy.

The indefinite article is the equivalent of the English a, an,

some:
Oku ou lau ha tohi.

I am reading a book.

Oku ou tala ki ha tamasii.

I am telling to a child.

In this case the stress does not fall.

The ha can be used with the meaning of "some": Oku ou
fiemau ha meakai = I want some food
Finally the ha is used before nouns identified with numbers:
Ha vaka e taha

one boat

Ha fale e ono

six houses

In daily talk when the preposition i is used before the

article he, the preposition is ommited:
Oku ou i he fon --> oku ou he fon
In some cases we can use the definite article before a
word, and still not put the accent on the final. In this case
there is a sense of indefiness similar to the one expressed
with the indefinite ha. The difference is slight and
sometimes hard to explain.
Tongan has also emotional articles. These identify nouns for
which the speaker feels affection, love or pity. These
articles are sii (definite) and sia (indefinite):
Te u fakatau sii pus.

I will buy the little cat.

Te u fakatau sia pusi.

I will buy a little cat.

Here the speaker wants to show his/her love for the cat.
Note that with the definite sii the stress falls on the
ultimate again.
Ok ne he puh?

Is it in the box?

Ikai, ok ne he toh.

No, its in the book.

Oku mou mai mei kolo?

Are you coming from the town?

Ikai, oku mau mai mei he fonu.

No, we are coming from the land.

Note that kolo didnt take the definite article he,

while fonua did.
Exercises
Exercise A: Translate the following:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)

Are you (sing.) going to the beach?

No, I am going to the canoe.
Are they in the school?
You (pl.) are sailing from Tonga to Fiji.
I am in the palace.
Are they in the book?
No, they are in the computer.
It is in the exercise.

Solutions
Solution of Exercise A:
????????????????????????

'Ofa atu

Lesson Seven / Lsoni Fitu

Vocabulary

Fmili
Kinga
Fngota
Mohe
Mohenga
Fakamohe

family
relatives
to fish
to sleep
bed
to put to sleep

Kakau
Kaukau
Fnau
Pp
Otua
Tamai
Kui
Kelekele
Fonua
Fakafonua
Tauhi
Taai
Faiako

to swim
to bath
children
baby
God
father
Grandparent
land, soil
land, country
traditional, national, pertaining to the land
to take care of
to beat, to hit
teacher, to teach

Grammar
More On Articles the focus markers transitive and
intransitive constructions
In the previous lesson we learned the structure "Oku ou lau
e toh" (I am reading the book). As we said, e is the definite
article. In fact this is the way Tongans speak. In written
form this sentence would be Oku ou lau a e toh. This a is
the focus marker and it is usually ommited in daily talk. In
the European languages, the distinction is subject-object.
The subject is in the nominative, while the object in
accusative, dative etc. In Tongan the distinction is
different. There is the focus marker a which denotes "the
focus of the verbs action". With intransitive verbs, this is
the equivalent of the European "subject". See the following
paradigms:
Oku mohe a e tamasi

The boy is sleeping

The boy is the focus of the verbs action.

Oku tangi a e fefin

The woman is crying

Oku a e fna

The kids are going

Oku kaukau a e fae

Mum is taking a bath

Oku kai a Paula

Paul is eating

With transitive verbs though, the focus of the verbs action

is the object:
"The boy is reading the book" The focus of the verbs
action is the book. The action and its consequences are
lead towards the book. In this case, the a will precede the
word for "book". The other noun, the boy, will be preceded
by another marker, e. When the noun is not proper, e is
followed also by the definite article he:
Oku lau e he tamasi a e toh
Note that the word order is VSO. More examples:
Oku tauhi e he fae a e fna

The mother is taking care of the kids

Oku taai e he tangat a e taahin

The man is beating the girl

Oku fai e Sione a e lson

John is doing the lesson

Oku tauhi e he Tu a e kaka

The King takes care of the people

Note again that proper nouns, like Sione, Paula etc. are not
preceded by the definite articles e and he. The
word Otua is not considered to be a proper noun and it
takes the definite articles.
Remember that in daily talk the focus marker a is
ommited:
Oku kata e tangat

The man is laughing

Oku tauhi e he fae e ppe

The mother takes care of the baby

Oku talavou e fefin

The woman is beautiful

When the object of a transitive construction is not

something specific, one particular object, person etc then
it comes right after the verb without any articles:
Oku inu vai a e tamasi

The boy is drinking water

Oku kai talo a e fefin

The woman is eating taro

You can see here that although the verbs are transitive
according to the European standards, the construction in
Tongan is intransitive. The focus marker a remains before
the subject. Contrast the following:
Oku inu e he tamasi a e va
Oku kai e he fefin a e tal

The boy is drinking the water (some specific quantity of

water)

The woman is eating the taro (some specific piece of taro

Exercises
Exercise A: Translate the following sentences, as they would be in written language:
1) Is Tonga beautiful?
2) The pupil is lying.
3) The teacher beats the pupil.
4) The boy is swimming.
5) The woman is resting.
6) The man is taking care of the children.
7) The father is putting the baby to sleep.
8) Are you (plural) at the kitchen?
9) She is going to the hospital.
10) I stay at home.

Exercise B: Translate the following sentences as they would be in spoken language:

1) The kids are drinking kava.
2) The kids are drinking the kava.
3) The family is fishing.

Solutions
Solution of Exercise A:
????????????????????????

Solution of Exercise B:
????????????????????????

'Ofa atu

End Of Part One

This is the end of part one. Now you've learned some of the
basics of the Tongan language. In the future we might
create a part two of this course but for now this is all.
Thanks for your interest in this course! If you discovered
any mistakes or you just want to say something then
please let us know . We do need feedback!